Machinery foe



ELBRIDGE WEBBER AND N. O. MITCHELL, OF GARDINER, MAINE.

MACHINERY FOR TURNING TREENAILS.

Specification of Letters Eatent No. 4,953, dated February 5, 1847.

T all 'whom t may concern Be it known that we, ELBRIDGE VEBBER andNATHAN O. MITCHELL, of the town of Gardiner, in the county of Kennebecand State of Maine, have invented a new and useful machine intendedprincipally for the manufacture and finishing of treenails, lbutapplicable to other useful purposes, the d'e-'i scription of which is asfollows, reference being had to the annexed drawings of the same, makingpart of this specification.

Figure 1 is a top view or plan of the machine. Fig. 2 isa side elevationof the Inachine. F ig. 3 is an elevation of the rear end of the machine.Fig. 4 is a vertical longitudinal section of the divided box containingthe cutter, made funnel shaped at both ends, resembling a double hollowtruncated cone. Fig. 5 is a front elevation of the bo-x, cutter, and setscrews. Fig. 6 is a front elevation of the sliding box. Fig. 7 is afront elevation of the square socket into which the tree-nail to berounded is inserted.

The frame A of this machine is made of a rectangular form `of convenientlength, breadth, height, and suitable material. The driving parts of themachine consist of a fly wheel B and a driving'cog wheel c on ahorizontal shaft D that turns in stationary boxes E in the frame A. Asliding frame is arranged to slide horizontally back and forth betweentwo horizontal parallel ribs or ways G, G, fastened to the top of theframe A. A long cog wheel H or pinion of less diameter than the cogwheel C and as long as the treenail to be made 'is geared into thedriving cog wheel c. The shaft I of the pinion H turns in suitable boxesin the sliding frame F. A square socket K is formed on the end of theshaft I-said socket being designed to receive the end of the treenailpreviously squared. In front of the sliding pinion is a metal socket Lor double truncated box to'receive the point of `the tree nail. Thissocket resembles in form a cylinder with its two ends flaring outwardfrom the center like a common hour or sand glass. It should be madesuiiiciently enlarged at both ends to permit the treenail to follow thegrain of the wood in passing through the box or socket. This socket ismade in two part-s as represented in the drawings at Figs. 4 and 5 forthe purpose of varying the size of the treenail. The outer or left handend of the upper section of thesocket is secured by a hinge L. The inneror right hand end of said upper section is raised or lowered in order toincrease or diminish the diameter of the throat of the socket by setscrews L2. 0n one side of the neck of this socket is an opening Ls of asuitable size and shape for the admission of the knife, or cutter M, andfor the discharge of the chips. This knife is so formed as to combinethe properties of the gouge and the chisel. The knife is secured by ajaw N and set screw O. The box or socket is stationary being firmlyattached t-o the frame A. There is another socket or box P attached to asliding frame Q Q2 to receive and steady the point of the treenail whilebeing pointed by a knife R fixed in said socket. The frame of thissocket consists of two parallel horizontal bars Q fixed in a transversehead block Q2 said bars Q being made to slide in corresponding openingsin the frame. A center screw S' is inserted through the center of thehead block into the socket or box having a pivot or point S on which thetreenail is turned while having the end tapered.

The cutter R is a trapezoidal shaped plate having a beveled cutting edgemade like a plane iron, and an oblong mortise for the admission of a setscrew T by which it is fastened to the socket. It is placed in thethroat through which the chips escape. This socket exteriorly is of acylindrical form. It is held against the stationary socket L by a cordu, weight fu, and pulley w.

For varying the size of the treenail the position of the knife or cuttershould be varied as well as the diameter of the socket or box. Toincrease the diameter of the treenail the cutting edge ofthe knife isremoved farther from the center of the socket by loosening the jaw andinserting wedges under the cutter and again tightening the aw by the setscrew. In the drawing the sliding motion of the `frame F is representedas being regulated by hand and moved forward during the operation ofcuttingV byka cord, weight, and pulley;-but for a full sized machinefo-r the manufacture of all sorts of treenails, to any considerableextent,` the sliding motio-n should be regulated by gear, on the sameprinciple of the clapboard machine, but with a difference of feed.

The piece of wood to be formed into a tree-nail is inserted into thesocket K and madel fast therein and the machine being put in motion byany convenient and adequate power the other end of the piece of wood isintroduced into the stationary socket L it then comes in contact withthe cutter M by which it is reduced to the required diameter, the chipspassing out through the throat in the neck of the socket. The end of thetreenail then comes'in contact with the center pin S of the slidingsocket P on which it turns-its periphery coming in co-ntact with thecutter of said socket by which the treenail is pointed, the said socketmoving with the treenail to the left as far as it is intended to go, thecord attached to its frame being at the same time drawn up over thepulley and the weight rising with it.

The division of the stationary or hourglass, shaped socket is horizontaland for ordinary uses and for hand po-wer will be found most convenient.But for the manufacture of treenails on a large scale and by horse,steam or water power, and where in the same machine it is desirable tovary the size more than is convenient in this form, the socket should bedivided vertically and opened and closed by set screws at each enddispensing with the hinge.

The object in making the stationary box funnel shaped at both ends is toreduce the width of the bearing where the cutter is inserted so as topermit a crooked or sweeping treenail to have a circular sweep as itpasses through the throat, or bearing, o-f the box, by which it will bemade to have a round form throughout its who-le length (except the head)the required diameter of the hole into which it is to be insertedwithout cutting across the grain of the wood, which the cutter would doif the box were made the same diameter throughout its entire length, andwhich would injure such treenails very materially. This was a seriousevil in our first machine. In making treenails by hand which is the modenow practised the maker does not interfere with the longitudinalcurvature of the treenail, it being brought straight when driven intothe side of the vessel. The obj ect in separating' or dividing the boxat the center or middle of its diameter is to be able to vary the sizeof the treenail by starting the set screws. When the set screws areturned to the left the size of the treenail will be increased. Vhen theyare turned to the right an opposite effect is produced. In boring a shipwit-h holes for the reception of the treenails the mechanic may commenceboring in the morning with a new auger and by sunset it will be fo-undto be nearly one sixteenth of an inch smaller in diameter than it was atthe commencement. Hence the necessity of varying the size of thetreenail accordingly, which this machine does by simply turning the setscrews and bringing the cutter nearer the center.

An essential quality possessed by this machine is that o-f making thetreenail the ree quired length by having the pinion made as long as t-herequired treenail and giving it a tapering point by means of the slidingbox at the outer end of stationary cutter box, having a cutter in it topoint the treenail and a central pivot to arrest the farther entranceinto the sliding box containing the said pointing cutter the box thensliding back with the treenail as it passes through the combinedtruncated box of the stationary cutter.

This machine is designed to be operated, generally, by hand power, butmay be operated by any convenient and adequate power. Tt is placed inthe ship yard so that the ship builders can make the treenails as theywish to use them and so that he can at all times adjust the cutter ofthe stationary box to cut the treenail to correspond with the wear ofthe auger in boring the ship.

With an ordinary machine a man can turn from one thousand to fifteenhundred per day taking them ,from the square as they are split from theblock,l turning them off to a cylindrical form, while by the old mode ofmaking them by hand a man makes a much less number and very imperfectly,not cylindrical, but rather of a polygonal form, and not correspondingwith the auger holes in the sides of the vessel designed to receivethem.

That we claim as our invent-ion and desire to secure by Letters Patentis- The combination of the revolving pinion socket K, the stationarydouble trumpet mouthed socket L, and gouge shaped cutter M, with thesliding socket P, and beveled cutter R constructed, arranged, andoperated in the manner and for the purpose above described and setforth.

ELBRIDGE WEBBER. NATHAN O. MITCHELL.

Signed in our presence:

NATHL. M. VHITMORE, LoRnNso CLAY.

